That's the way things stand right now, with Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar potentially opening the 2018 season at second base and third base.

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Asked if he was intrigued by that exact scenario, Brian Cashman responded: "Intrigued? I mean, it's kind of the plan right now. We certainly could deviate from that at any point if we want to buy us some more time. But when we made the decision to move (Starlin) Castro and (Chase) Headley, it was obviously gravitating to the use and upside — including growing pains — of Tyler Wade, Torres, Thairo Estrada, Andujar and Ronald Torreyes." The GM also included recent non-roster invite Jace Peterson in that mix.

It is believed the Bombers want to give Torres, 21, every opportunity to win a starting job while Andujar, who turns 23 in March, may not be ready for that chance just yet.

Torres, considered the second-best prospect in baseball behind Shohei Ohtani by MLB.com, has completed his rehab from Tommy John surgery on his left elbow. But given that he hasn't played in a game since suffering the season-ending injury in mid-June, Cashman has left open the possibility that Torres, who hit .448 last spring, could ultimately start next season in the minors.

"It's easier to kind of expect that he'll need more time because he didn't have a full season in Triple-A and he hasn't played since June 17," Cashman said. "But I think when you have a lot of ability, you have a chance to change that storyline rather quickly.

"But he hasn't played in a while, so it wouldn't be surprising if there's some rust that needs to be knocked off. Still, he's talented, so we'll see."

It makes sense for Cashman to temper expectations. But with the Bombers looking to win the AL East this year and not have to play in another sudden-death wild-card game, Torres has the type of potential to help them close the gap with the Red Sox. He showed an ability to hit to all fields last spring while displaying an advanced baseball IQ for his age.

As for Andujar, who had three hits in his MLB debut on June 28, his defense remains a work in progress. "The bat is definitely something that you can play now," Cashman said. "The defense is an area that he's finishing off. But when you have the type of talent that these two guys (Andujar and Torres) possess, when it all comes together, it comes fast."

Besides Torres and Andujar, there are other respectable internal options. Torreyes has shown the ability to fill in admirably for both Gregorius and Castro in long stretches. The Bombers are still high on Wade, 23, who went just 9-for-58 at the plate in limited action at the big-league level. "I don't think there's anything he needs to do other than just get reps," Cashman said. "It's as simple as that. He's somebody that needs an opportunity, and when it presents itself, he has to take advantage of it."

Estrada, who turns 22 in February, hit .301/.353/.392 at Double-A Trenton in 2017 while Peterson has a .650 OPS in parts of four seasons in the majors.

It is believed the Yankees want to give Gleyber Torres every opportunity to win an everyday job. (Matt Rourke/AP)

If the Yankees do decide to go outside the organization, former Reds GM Jim Bowden recently linked them with Travis Shaw, who had 31 homers and 101 RBI for the Brewers last season. That would be a possible trade, Bowden, now with The Athletic, said, contingent on Milwaukee signing Mike Moustakas.

Pittsburgh's Josh Harrison is a possible trade candidate, though it's unknown what the Pirates would want for him.

Todd Frazier was liked by the club for his contributions both on and off the field, but it's hard to see them fitting him into the equation on a multi-year deal, as they may want free-agent superstar Manny Machado in that spot come 2019.

A reunion with Eduardo Nunez is another intriguing option. But again, in each scenario, the money would have to work.

While reports have pegged the Yankees at around $20 million under the $197 million luxury-tax threshold, it is believed it's even lower than that. The team has not commented publicly on the exact figure, but the Bombers must also account for September callups, trade deadline possibilities and performance bonuses, among other additional expenses.

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"We just have to make sure that when the dust settles and everything's done, we reset our clock," Cashman said referring to ownership's mandate to get under the tax in advance of a star-studded 2019 free-agent class.

That means the GM would have to get creative in order to land a free-agent like Yu Darvish and fit his possible $20 million per year salary by perhaps somehow managing to off-load part of Jacoby Ellsbury's $68 million remaining salary over the next three seasons. And the Giants don't appear interested, even after saying Andrew McCutchen and Hunter Pence will be their corner outfielders in 2018.

Brett Gardner ($11.5 million) and David Robertson ($13 million) have been speculated as trade candidates to dump payroll, but each is extremely valuable on both the diamond and in the clubhouse. Adam Warren ($3.3 million) has also been mentioned as well.

Asked whether he prioritizes starting pitching or infield help, Cashman responded: "We don't really have a priority. We have areas where we could reinforce the starting rotation or we could improve on one of the two infield spots. And when something makes enough sense and happens to declare itself in one aspect or another, we'd probably gravitate to it. But we're ready to go with what we've got because our rotation already has a lot of depth with the five guys we already have and Warren, Chad Green, Domingo German, Luis Cessa, Chance Adams, Justus Sheffield, Domingo Acevedo and Albert Abreu. And everyone else on the infield side that we already talked about."